Skid devices have been previously designed to be dragged behind a hay baler for the purpose of stacking hay bales into small stacks which are deposited in the field for further curing of the hay. This system of hay preparation enables baling of hay with as much as 40% moisture. The bales will go through a period of sweating for from two to five weeks but eventually dry out and remain dry.
This system enables any sweating or curing of the bales to occur in the field rather than in the barn thus avoiding discomfort to the worker and the hazards of possible spontaneous combustion. This system also enables baling of the hay without a final turning of the windrow and produces excellent quality baled hay. The method of this invention permits baling of hay of high moisture content which is dry by the wind even during periods of little sunlight, for example during October or November when a final crop of hay can often be harvested but not dried using conventional techniques.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved hay stacking sled which will provide six bale shocks of hay having improved stability even on steep hills. It is a further object of the invention to provide such device to provide such stacks which will stand in a rainproof fashion for drying of the hay. Further objects are to provide such a device which provides maximum safety and ease of operation. Another important objective is to provide a method of curing hay utilizing such device or similar devices for stacking bales in stable, weather-proof stacks wherein they will cure properly even under unfavorable weather conditions. It has been discovered that when hay is dried in stacks provided by the present invention, the hay dries without heating or sweating and that the protein in the hay then remains in a more readily available manner for bovine animal to digest. Moreover, it has been discovered that hay dried in accordance with the present invention contains a higher percentage of protein than hay prepared by previously used techniques apparently because it is baled in a more moist condition and thus loses less of the proteinaceous, leaves and tops than when baled in a drier more brittle condition.